Hurricane Wilma - Cat. 5

[Ground_Zero_92]

Am I reading that right? No hurricane force winds in most of the northern part of the circulation?

That's how I read it too. If that's correct and if that windfield stays consistant the SE quad is gonna do the pounding.

[THead]

5PM advisory put it at 105mph

[conestogo_flood]

Anderson Cooper reporting:

"I'm here at the Tiki Bar, the winds are just blowing really strong now. They're blowing so strong that it blew the umbrella right out of my drink!"

Just a little humour to mix in.

[6SpeedTA95]

Am I reading that right? No hurricane force winds in most of the northern part of the circulation?

That's how I read it too. If that's correct and if that windfield stays consistant the SE quad is gonna do the pounding.

There's significant shearing taking place on the northern part of the storm, there's still a core of the storm but its really getting hammered starting about 80 or so miles north of the center.

[soonertwister]

Pressure rise reversed and dropping, shrinking circular eyewall, winds to follow?

Wilma's making me nervous. Too many people in FL treating her too lightly.

[storms in NC]

959mb with a 45mile eye with 96kt in the latest vortex.

WOW

[WindRunner]

Pressure rise reversed and dropping, shrinking circular eyewall, winds to follow?

Wilma's making me nervous. Too many people in FL treating her too lightly.

Yes, I'm starting to worry a little right now too.

[WindRunner]

Air Force heading home now . . .

[MGC]

The key will be the diameter of the eye. If the eye starts contracting then Wilma will get much stronger. That 45NM wide eye is pretty big for a major hurricane.....MGC

[El Nino]

96 kts ? Is that sustained winds or just a gust ? Because it's just the limit of a cat3 hurricane !

[Brent]

96 kts ? Is that sustained winds or just a gust ? Because it's just the limit of a cat3 hurricane !

FLIGHT LEVEL.

[soonertwister]

96 kts ? Is that sustained winds or just a gust ? Because it's just the limit of a cat3 hurricane !

Flight level. 100 mph at the surface.

[WindRunner]

The key will be the diameter of the eye. If the eye starts contracting then Wilma will get much stronger. That 45NM wide eye is pretty big for a major hurricane.....MGC

Yeah . . . imagine what'll happen if it shrinks up!

[curtadams]

There is a flurry of recon data coming in, but surface dropsondes now support 105 mph. VDM, eye dropsonde show 959 mb.

Where's the surface wind dropsonde? I can't find any but eye dropsondes.

[Canelaw99]

Pressure rise reversed and dropping, shrinking circular eyewall, winds to follow?

Wilma's making me nervous. Too many people in FL treating her too lightly.

Yes, I'm starting to worry a little right now too.

She's making me a bit nervous now too. We're prepared, but I don't like the direction she's headed.

[WindRunner]

There is a flurry of recon data coming in, but surface dropsondes now support 105 mph. VDM, eye dropsonde show 959 mb.

Where's the surface wind dropsonde? I can't find any but eye dropsondes.

It's the same thing, but in the eyewall instead of the eye. Here's the latest one, showing a pressure of 970mb and winds of 75kts at the surface in the eyewall.

765
UZNT13 KNHC 232104
XXAA 73218 99240 70851 08145 99970 25402 05075 00771 ///// /////
92416 22400 06076 85152 20815 08071 70817 13603 88999 77999
31313 09608 82040
61616 AF304 2124A WILMA OB 35
62626 EYEWALL 360 SPL 2400N08518W 2044 MBL WND 05579 AEV 20507 DL
M WND 07579 970763 WL150 05079 075 =
XXBB 73218 99240 70851 08145 00970 25402 11871 20000 22850 20815
33696 13403
21212 00970 05075 11958 05081 22946 05578 33937 06083 44928 06075
55903 06591 66887 07093 77872 07582 88864 07583 99857 08073 11850
08071 22818 08583 33696 09577
31313 09608 82040
61616 AF304 2124A WILMA OB 35
62626 EYEWALL 360 SPL 2400N08518W 2044 MBL WND 05579 AEV 20507 DL
M WND 07579 970763 WL150 05079 075 =

[CronkPSU]

more reds in the last IR frame (20:45) but they eye doesn't look healthy

wobble watchers may note it seems to be a tad further north on the last two frams

[vaffie]

959mb with a 45mile eye with 96kt in the latest vortex.

Just some random probably inaccurate calculations:

960 mb can support Cat 3 winds.
That would mean it has dropped 2 mb/hr for two hours--if it continued at this rate for the next five hours based on it's improving satellite presentation canceling out the shear, it would be down to 949 by 10 pm EDT, where if it is in a process of intensification it could remain near that level until landfall. 948 mb can support Cat 4 winds.

See: http://www.ssd.noaa.gov/PS/TROP/CI-chart.html
if you are interested in the pressure-wind relationship.

[El Nino]

105 according to latest discussion, so 10 km/h from cat3.

Another night of intensification ? Watch out for a cat5 cane tomorrow FL !

[6SpeedTA95]

96 kts ? Is that sustained winds or just a gust ? Because it's just the limit of a cat3 hurricane !

FLIGHT LEVEL.

thank you I was gonna say that, but iddn't have to